Maersk Lines Up as Many as 24 LNG Dual-Fuel Megaboxships at Hudong-Zhonghua in a 5.8 Billion Dollar Programme
Broker reports say A.P. Moller-Maersk has chosen Hudong-Zhonghua over Hengli Heavy Industry for 12 firm plus 12 option 24,000 TEU LNG dual-fuel containerships at about 240 million dollars each, which would be the largest ships the carrier has ever ordered.
A.P. Moller-Maersk is reportedly heading toward an order for up to 24 LNG dual-fuel containerships of about 24,000 TEU each at Hudong-Zhonghua Shipbuilding, a programme brokers value at roughly 5.8 billion dollars if all options are exercised. The reported structure is 12 firm ships plus options for 12 more, priced around 240 million dollars per vessel, with deliveries beginning from late 2029 or 2030. Neither Maersk nor the yard has confirmed a signed contract, and newbuilding trackers flag the deal as broker-reported pending official confirmation.
Shipbroking sources say Hudong-Zhonghua beat out runner-up Hengli Heavy Industry largely on delivery timing, with a new dry dock about to come onstream freeing berths for the late-2029 slots, and the yard has previously delivered 18 ships of 23,200 to 24,000 TEU for MSC, CMA CGM and Evergreen. Korean contenders including Hanwha Ocean and HD Hyundai plus Yangzijiang and Dajin fell away earlier in the race. Maersk is also understood to be wary of concentrating too much newbuilding at Hengli, a yard operating barely four years where it already placed 20 of the 26 18,600 TEU ships ordered in September alongside New Times Shipbuilding.
The prospective series would cap an extraordinary year: Maersk has already confirmed 34 ultra-large containerships in 2026 across New Times and Hengli for delivery in 2029 and 2030, and the new 24,000 TEU tranche would add a third, larger tier of up to 576,000 TEU to that renewal programme. The episode also underscores how tight yard slots have become for large dual-fuel tonnage, with carriers paying near-record prices to secure late-decade delivery windows at Chinese yards while the global orderbook sits near its highest levels since 2009.